The United States Copyright Office has issued a report clarifying its stance on AI-generated artwork, allowing for greater flexibility in registering such works.
According to the report, only works with meaningful human authorship will receive protection. Purely AI-generated content remains ineligible, but content that shows evidence of human creative choices can qualify.
The Copyright Office states that inputs or prompts given to AI image generators do not meet the threshold for authorship. However, if a human author modifies elements of the images, such as through inpainting or remixing, these changes may meet the minimum standard of originality required for protection.
Shira Perlmutter, the director of the Copyright Office, emphasized that creativity expressed through AI systems continues to enjoy protection.
This 41-page report follows an open consultation with thousands of stakeholders, including photographers. The Office will continue to evaluate applications on a case-by-case basis while monitoring developments in technology and law.
Additionally, the Copyright Office is preparing another report addressing the contentious issue of whether it is fair use to utilize copyrighted content for training AI systems.